There are two ways of looking at Dylan Larkin, the young - and now quite wealthy - center for the Red Wings.

One, it is time. The pride of Waterford Township has been given a 5-year, $30.5 million mandate to lead the Red Wings back to glory. If Henrik Zetterberg retires, which is widely anticipated, they need to make Larkin captain. Hand the keys to Larkin because he is the best part of what could be a promising future for the Red Wings.

The other is it’s too much, too soon. Larkin, who just turned 22, had a good season in 2017-18, but it’s relative to a genuine star. He had 16 goals, 47 assists, 63 points and was minus nine. His Corsi in close games was respectable, 50.7, but not exceptional. The Red Wings were bad last season, and Larkin logged a lot of ice time, so the subpar plus-minus number is understandable. The other stats are solid; his points treading upward after Larkin suffered a classic sophomore slump the season before. But they aren’t eye-popping, either. He was tied for 58th in the NHL in points, and 33rd in assists.

Larkin essentially proved he can play center regularly in the NHL after mostly being on a wing previously. But is he really a No.1?

We’ve been here before with Larkin. He took the NHL by storm early his rookie season, vaulting to among the leaders in plus-minus and gracing the cover of The Hockey News with the question, “The Next Jonathan Toews?”

Then he slumped mightily. So Larkin had a pretty good third year, and now he’s supposed to be, what, “The Next Steve Yzerman…”

That’s essentially what it would say to the Red Wings’ starving fanbase if Larkin were named captain. Yzerman, famously, was named captain at the tender age of 21.

Already, the Red Wings’ ticket selling campaign is based on Larkin. The plans are listed on the marquee at Little Caesars Arena next to his likeness. So are the ads running during the Tigers’ broadcasts on Fox Sports Detroit and upon the scoreboard at Comerica Park.

Larkin definitely has his plusses. He has extraordinary speed. At higher levels of competition internationally playing for the United States, at both the World Junior Championships and World Championships, Larkin has risen his performance.

Teams adjusted to his play early his rookie season and he became lost. He was roughed up a lot, and seemed to have difficulty fending for himself on the ice. Not any more. He’s stronger on his skates, savvy when it comes to creating space on the ice and has become a much better playmaker.

Used to be a time when the prime of an NHL forward was considered 28, but now it’s more like 24. Two years from now Larkin could be an exceptional player.

Larkin also has cognitive recognition beyond most his age. He’s understands situations and people and how to learn from failure rather than be ruined by it. That’s why he’s been labeled a potential captain from the moment the Red Wings selected him in the first round, 15th overall, in the 2014 NHL Draft prior to his freshman - and only season - at the University of Michigan.

With rank comes responsibility, though. If they put the “C” above the winged-wheel crest on Larkin’s blood, red jersey, he’d have to meet a standard unlike any he has remotely before, especially given what being captain of the Red Wings’ has meant. Yzerman, Nicklas Lidstrom, Zetterberg - that “C” is more than just a letter. It’s a genuine honor. They don’t “name” the Red Wings’ captain, they “anoint” him.

Would I make Larkin captain? Yeah. Probably. But I’d darn well make sure he knows exactly what it means, not only in the Red Wings’ dressing room, but this town overall, before I’d do it.